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Taiwan incentivizes mobile payments

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The government in Taiwan is planning initiatives to promote adoption of mobile payments, with plans to subsidize transaction fees to make in-store mobile payments more attractive to consumers, according to Focus Taiwan.

Government departments can help promote mobile payments by subsidizing transaction fees or selecting stores based on whether they provide mobile payment options, as well as by offering discounts for mobile payments. The Ministry of Finance, for example, will provide a tax incentive to small businesses by allowing them to continue paying 1% in business tax â" even if their business expands â" as long as they provide mobile payment options to customers.

Taiwan is ripe for mobile payment adoption, and government incentives could be an effective method to encourage consumer use.

Mobile wallets exist in Taiwan but donât see heavy usage. Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and Android Pay all launched in Taiwan last year. But mobile payments arenât popular, with only 13% of the population using them, despite the country having one of the highest levels of smartphone penetration in the world â" Taiwanâs smartphone penetration is expected to reach 93% this year. The country is set up to use mobile payments â" 61% of consumers in Taiwan are aware of NFC technology and contactless payments, with more than 80% of consumers willing to try or continue to use it, according to data from Mastercard â" and incentives could be a push toward substantial adoption.

A government incentive could help boost adoption. The government set a target to have 90% of mobile phone users using mobile payments by 2025.Given the volume of consumers with smartphones and the country's access to mobile payments options, Taiwan is well positioned to adopt mobile wallets. This government initiative could be the incentive merchants need to start accepting mobile payments, which could ultimately encourage consumers to start utilizing them. And consumers are receptive to incentives â" Samsung Pay, for example, saw its user base increase 49% since launching with Samsung Rewards, which awards users with points that can be redeemed for Samsung products based on the frequency of spend.

Jaime Toplin, research analyst for BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has written a detailed report on mobile payments that:

Identifies three strategic changes providers can make to improve their results.

Evaluates pockets of success in the market.

Provides actionable insights that providers can implement to improve results.

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